Apparatus for grading and packing snow



'3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. 1'7. 1951 V. mm

A mm mm 0 1 S. BRADLEY APPARATUS FOR GRADING AND PACKING SNOW Filed Dec.17, 1951 March 26, 1957 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 .lllll I INVENTOR. 1 StephenBradley BY ATTORN EYS March 26, 1957 s. BRADLEY 2,786,283

APPARATUS FOR GRADING AND PACKING SNOW Filed Dec. 17, 1951 3Sheets-Sheet 3 a MM 7| WWW/01 4mm INVENTOR. Stephen. Bradley BY f wv VVue-vbw /L ATTORNEYS United States Patent APPARATUS FOR GRADING ANDPACKING SNOW Stephen Bradley, Boulder, Colo.

Application December 17, 1951, Serial No. 261,993

14 Claims. (Cl. 31-10).

This invention relates to apparatus for packing and grading snow, whichapparatus, is particularly useful in snow packing and maintenanceoperations on a ski course. 7

being sometime sufficiently high or deep to cause difficulty to lessexperienced skiers, and also tend to cause the skiers to follow thesame, route down. In addition, between snow falls, the depth of the snowtends to be diminished during use, so that irregularities in the land,such as caused by grass hummocks, rocks and the like, may be uncoveredand thereby contribute a hazard to use of the course.

Prior to the present invention, the customary method of maintaining theski course, between periods of new snow, has been to send outmaintenance men with shovels, who cut off the tops of snow hummocks andshovel snow in the snow valleys, as well as shovel snow onto thin orbare spots in the course. Needless to say, these hand operations withshovels are not only time consuming and require an undue number ofmaintenance personnel, but also interfere unduly with use of the course.

Among the objects of the present invention are to provide a novelapparatus for packing snow on a ski course or the like; to providesuitable apparatus for grading a ski course, i. e. removing high pointsor hummocks of snow and moving such removed snow into lower points orvalleys; to provide such grading apparatus which will simultaneouslytend to pack the removed snow into the previous valleys; to provide suchapparatus which requires a minimum of personnel for operations; toprovide such apparatus whose use tends to produce a minimum ofinterference with normal use of a ski course; to provide such apparatuswhich is safe to use ona steep slope; to provide such apparatus whichmay be adjusted to accommodate different conditions of use; to providesuch apparatus which is sufiiciently simple in construction that it maybe made economically; to provide such apparatus which is particularlyefi'ective in operation; and to pro- 'vide such apparatus which mayexist in any one of several embodiments.

Additional objects and the novel features of this invention will becomeapparent from the description which follows, taken in connection withthe accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a snow packer and grader constructed inaccordance with this invention;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the apparatus of Fig. 1, on a slightlyenlarged scale;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of apparatus substantially Patented Mar. 26,1957 identical with that of Fig.1, but having a differentframeeworkconstruction, said view being partly in section as along line 33 ofFig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary side elevation, on a slightly enlarged scale incomparison withFig. 1, showing particularly a grading blade and certainparts associated therewith;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged vertical. section taken along line 55 of Fig. 3,illustrating more particularly-a. preferred construction of asfront.runner of the rapparatusof Figs. 1-3;

Fig.6 is an enlarged fragmentary top plan view, showing particularly acable reel for bladecontrol and mounted at the front end of theapparatus;

Fig. 7 is a perspective; sketch illustrating an operate on skis usingthe apparatus Fig. 8 is a perspective view, with certainparts omitted,of an alternative construction forming an additional embodiment of thisinvention; and

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary perspective view of the forward portion of ahandle, illustrating; a variation of theycmbodiment of Fig. 8.

As illustrated in Figs. l-3, apparatus forpacking. and grading snow,constructed in accordance with this invention, may include a gradingblade B anda rotatable packer P or packing-wheel, eachrnounted-on aframework E which may be supported at the front end by a runner R and atthe rear endby the packer P, The apparatus may also be provided withahandle H, pivotally connected to the framework F at the front endthereof, and. also connected with therunner R, the handle H beingadapted to be used to turn the runner R for guiding the apparatus, whilesuitable means, described later, for regulating the elevation. of blade13 maybe mountedpartly on the handle H and partly on the framework F. Asillustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, the packer P may comprise a series ofslats 10, mounted in spaced circumferential relation onthe periphery oftwo or morewheels, such as end wheels 11, and if desiredattached, also,to a, center reinforcing ring, 12. The slats 1 0 are preferably made ofwood, althoughthey may be made of metal, if desired. The spacesbetweenthe slats 10 may be approximately the same, or greater or less than,thelwidth of the. respective slats, so that as the packer P turns, the-Show will not only tend to become compac ed by theslats,

but also a churning effect will be produced. In addition, any snowpassing between the slats will fall throtg gh as the packer rotates..For skiing, of course, the snow need notbe packed solid, since acomparatively solid base with several inches of snow into which the skiswill sink is deemed preferable by many skiers. The slats .10 may berectangular or any other desired shape in crosssection, although atrapezoidal cross section, as shown, is advantageous, with the narrowerface on top. As will be evident from Fig, 3, snow 'tendsto fall awayfrom the slats. The packer P may have any desired width, such as fromfour to six feet, and the diameter of the wheels 11 may be intheneighborhood of 30inches, with the slats 10 between three and fourinches in median width, although all of these dimensions may be variedconsiderably.

Each of the slats 10 may further be provided with one or more cleats 13,such as formed by angles attached to the slats, one convenientarrangement thereof comprising cleats in staggered relation over thecentral portion of the packer with a row of cleats adjacent each end.The

moretcle rly. in Figs. 1 and, 3,. Guides 14. nay homage of either woodor metal and curve upwardly at the front end, each guide 14 beingconveniently mounted on or attached to a supporting bar 15, in turnpivotally mounted at its forward end on the framework F, while anangularly extending reinforcing bar 16 also may be provided if desired,the latter also being pivoted to the framework F at its upper end andattached at its lower end to the guide 14. In addition, each guide 14may be urged downwardly into the snow, as by a spring 17 attached at itsrear end to the framework F and at its forward end to a bracket 18 whichin turn is mounted or suitably attached to bar 16 (as shown), or to theguide support bar 15. As will be evident, spring 17 will tend tomaintain the guides 14 in the snow, even though the packer P may engagethe snow over a small portion of its width, as when passing over a largehummock. Thus, one or both of the guides 14 may be moved downwardlybelow the position shown in Figs. 1 and 3, as when one or both ends ofthe packer P are above the snow level at that point.

The framework F may be made of plates, bars, tubes, or the like,suitably shaped and attached together in a suitable manner, as bywelding. Thus, the side bars 20 and rear bar 21 of Fig. 1 may be formedfrom plates or bars, although certain frame parts may have a compositestructure, as in Fig. 3, provided by upper and lower tubes 22 and 23,respectively, which are bent to shape to form the periphery of frame Fand are connected together at spaced points by plates 24 and 24', whichmay be welded to the upper and lower tubes 22 and 23. The composite ortruss construction of the principal frame parts, illustrated in Fig. 3,tends to be somewhat lighter than the solid plate construction of Fig.1, although other cross sectional shapes, such as channels, may beutilized for the parts of the framework F. The packer P is mounted forrotation on the framework F, and may conveniently rotate about a singleshaft, but to conserve weight and material may rotate about a pair ofshort shafts 25 each of which, as in Fig. 2, may extend from a mountingplate 26 on the side bar 20, adjacent the rear end of framework F, orfrom a plate 24 of framework F of Fig. 3, and through a bearing 27 atthe center of a wheel 11. Each shaft 25 may be suitably reinforced, asby a bracket 28 attached to the shaft adjacent the bearing 27 andextending angularly, both forwardly and rearwardly, to the side bar 20.Any other suitable manner of mounting the packer P for rotation on theframework F may, of course, be utilized.

Runner R, which may be made of either wood or metal and is preferablyupturned at the front end in the same manner as a ski or toboggan, maybe provided with a keel 29, as shown in Figs. 3 and 5, to minimize sideslippage, and also may be pivotally mounted, as on a pin 30 at the lowerend of a shaft 31. Shaft 31 extends upwardly through a bearing orhousing 32, the latter being disposed vertically and convenientlyforming a front point of connection for the side bars or tubes of theframework F. The handle H, which may be made in any desired manner, suchas from tubular parts attached together in the form of a light trussstructure, includes side tubes 33 pivotally mounted at their rear endson a pin 34, which in turn is attached centrally to a collar 35 at theupper end of shaft 31, which also prevents shaft 31 from slipping out ofhousing 32. The handle H also preferably includes a U-shaped vtube 36,open at one side, in which the operator may be positioned, with the tube36 at about the level of the operators waist, as shown in Fig. 7. Theoperator may noranally grasp the front part of U-tube 36, and move thefront end of handle H from side to side to produce a correspondingturning movement of the runner R, in guiding the apparatus down theslope.

The blade B, as in Figs. 1-3, is preferably made of metal and may be aslightly dished or arcuate blade, ,provided at each end with areinforcing plate 37 and also adjacent each end with a rearwardlyextending bracket 3 the blade being pivotally mounted on the rear endsof a.

pair of supporting bars 33, the latter of which may be pivoted at theirfront ends on pins 40 attached 0 the sides of the framework F.

The blade may further be provided with a plurality of teeth 41,preferably formed of metal and Welded or otherwise suitably attached tothe blade, so that hard humm-ocks may be more readily cut down or shavedoff, although the blade may have a smooth lower edge, if desired.

As will be evident, the blade B may be adjusted vertically, throughpivotal movement of its supporting bars 39, and the angularity of theblade also may be adjusted by pivotal movement of the blade about therear ends of the supporting bars. For the latter purpose, a rod 42 maybe attached, as by welding, between the supporting bars 39 at a positionforward of the blade B, and provided at its center with a bracket 43 towhich an adjusting bar 44 may be connected, such as by a clamp, or by aremovable pin adapted to be inserted in one of a number of spaced holes(not shown) or other suitable means to hold the adjusting bar 4 in adesired position. The rear end of the adjusting bar 42 may be pivotallyattached, as by a pin 45, to the center of the upper edge of the blade Bat a bar 46 in turn attached to the blade B, so that movement of theadjusting bar 44 to different positions will cause the blade to pivotabout the rear end of the supporting bars 39, thus changing theinclination or angle of the blade B, i. e. such as to and from thedotted positions of Fig. 3, and cause the blade to be more nearlyvertical or more nearly horizontal, and thereby to act merely to pushsnow ahead of it or to slice into hummocks or the like on an angle. Thepivotal adjustment of the blade B about its own longitudinal axis, willof course depend upon snow conditions and the use to which the blade isbeing put, i. e. such as whether the snow is hard and a greater shearingaction by the blade is required or desired, or whether the snow isrelatively soft and may merely be pushed ahead by the blade. Ordinarily,the pivotal position of the blade will be substantially unchanged duringuse on the course until the snow conditions themselves change.

As indicated previously, the elevation of the blade B may also bechanged while the apparatus is in use, to accommodate variations in snowdepth, of sizes of hummocks, of the amount of snow to be moved to coverbare or thin spots, and the like. Large hummocks may be cut down in twoor more passes or runs down the slope, rather than attempting to cutthem down completely at one time, which latter might require a greaterforce than that produced by the momentum of the apparatus moving downthe slope, coupled with the push of the operator, when thrust forwardagainst the handle H. Also, it may be desirable to interfere as littleas possible with use of ski course, in which event runs as rapid as issafe may be desired, so that even though it might be possible to cutdown hammocks or otherwise grade the slope in a single or a lessernumber of runs, but at a much slower speed, the number of runs may beincreased.

The vertical adjustment of the blade B may be accomplished throughsuitable raising and lowering mechanism, such as including a reel 47mounted on a pin 48 at the forward end of the handle H, in a positionconvenient for access by the operator, as in Figs. 2 and 6, and the reelis also provided with a handle 49 which the operator may utilize inturning the reel in a desired direction. A wire or cable 5-0 is woundabout the reel 47, and extends rearwardly along the handle H, such asthrough guide eyelets 51 attached to the underside of the handle, as inFig. 3, and the opposite end of the cable is wound about a drum 52,which is preferably attached directly to a second drum 53. The diameterof drum 52 may be greater than the diameter of drum S3, to providesufficient mechanical advantage to enable the operator to lift the bladeB more readily. The drums 52; and 53 .may be mounted on a drum; shaft54, shown in Fig, 1

which in turn is mounted between a pair of parallel bars 55 forming apart of the structure of the framework F. One end of a cable 56 is woundabout drum 53,. cable .56 leading to a cable joint 57 for a pair ofcables 58,

in which turnbuckles 59 forcable adjustment may be incorporated. Cables58 diverge. and are connected at their rear ends to blade B, as in Fig,1 by passing over pulleys 60 to suitable points. of connection tothe-blade B, such as at brackets 33, or each. may be connected .to

a chain 61, with the, latter passing over a pulley 6% and attached atits lower end'to .the blade B, as in Figs. 3 and 4. The point ofattachment 'to the blade may, be on the rear side and. at a pointinsubstantiallyhorizontal alignment with thepoint of pivotal attachment ofthe, blade to the supporting bars 39, so that pivotal adjustment of theblade by adjustingbar 44 may. be more readily made with the blade inlifted position. Two

points of connection of the blade adjustment cables tend to insure. thatthe blade will be raised or lowered more evenly, and also that the bladewill have less tendency to twist at one end or the other during use,sinceoften a hummockwhich is being cutdown will extend over-only aportion of the blade. '1' he pulleys- 60 may be s pported by a pair ofbrackets 62 which are mounted on a cross bar or tube as, extendingbetween the sides of the framework, while the brackets 62 may bereinforced by upright bars which, as in Eig.:3, extend upwardly fromanother cross bar or tube, Such as tube 65 of Fig. 2. Or, the bracketsmay. be constructed in the manner of brackets 62 of Fig. 4. The upperends of the reinforcing bars 16 for the. guides. 14 also. may encirclethe tube65, as in Fig. 2, extending, angularly inwardly thereto so as togiveadditional.lateralpstability to the guides 14.

As will be evident, when the operator turnsthe front reel-4.7 in onedirection, the drums 5.2; and 53 will be rotated in the same direction,and rotation of thesecond drum 53 will be transmitted through the cables56 and 58 and thence to the blade B, to raise or lower the same. Duringuse of the apparatus, the operator, being ahead of the same, can observeirregularities in the snow surface, and with a little experience, canadjust the blade B upwardly or downwardly, in accordance with snowconditions. As. in Fig. 7, the operator-O may keep. one hand on the reel.handlet49, and the other hand on the front of .U-tube 36.0f the handleH, as. he moves down the slope on 'his' skis' 66.. The blade height maybe adjusted by turningthe reel, and the apparatus may be guided, asindicated previously, by moving the handle H to one side or theother,the 'operator'of course guiding himself by his skis.

In theevent that the device tends to run down the slope at too great aspeed, the operator can also lower the blade B, for use as a brake, andin the event that the operator finds himself in difficulty, eitherthrough mismanagement of his skis, or through encountering extremelydifiicultor unexpected snow or terrain conditions, it is desirablethat-the operator be able to stop the apparatus quickly. For thispurpose, and as a safety feature of the apparatus of this invention, apair of comparatively heavy springs 67 may each be attached at its rearend to the side of the framework F or P, and at its'forward end to a bar68. Each bar-68 is attached at its lower end to the supporting bars 39for the blade, so that the blade is always urged downwardly by thesprings 67, and further so that if the operatorv should release the reelhandle, the blade will automatically be pushed into the snow, thusstopping the apparatus. As willbe evident, this safety feature, willprevent the operator. from being run over by the apparatus, in the eventthat he stumbles or falls, or in the, event he has to stop suddenly,because of terrain conditions or other emergency, such as a skier aheadof the operator falling suddenly.

. grader and packer.

It will. of. coursebeevident that the. apparatus of this invention maybe utilized; while other skiers are moving downv the course, although itis generally preferable to hold skiersat the top of the course a'fewminutes after the apparatus is started. down, since while the apparatusbe moving downv the course at a reasonable speed, the skiers willnormally be moving down at a consider ably faster rate. Nevertheless, adelay of only a few minutes in taking the apparatus downthe course doesnot interfere unduly. with skiing, and even when the apparatus is takendown-the course several times, the skiers can still proceed down the.course between the downward passes of the apparatus. The apparatusmay bepower driven if desired, but for the normal ski course, the slope issufficiently great that the pull of gravity and the consequent tendencyof the apparatus to move down the slope will enable the desired gradingand packing to be accomplished without the necessity for adding a powerunit to the apparatus.

The apparatus of this invention is also particularly adapted to be movedup hill by a ski tow or lift; in the case of a T bar tow, the bar maymerely be hooked behind the operator, or the tow stopped and the handleH tied to one of the T-bars. When moving up hill, unless the apparatusis to be utilized to grade the up hill path, it is preferable to liftthe blade B and maintainit in an upper position, and this is readilyaccomplished merely by turning the reel until the blade is in an upperposition, then lashing or clamping the reel handle to the handle H, orother provision for locking may be utilized, such as a suitable holeprovided in one of the drums 52 or 53 and a hole also provided in one ofthe bars 55, so that a pin may be inserted therein to lock the drum inposition.

The apparatus mayalsobe used merely to pack down newly fallen snow, inwhich event the blade will normally be maintained in an upper positionbythe operator holding the handle of the reel or locking the blade up,while guiding the apparatus down the course. In use, it has been foundthat only a few him down the course are sufficient to pack evencomparatively deep, fresh snow. Also, in order to maintain the skicourse in condition, the apparatus may be pulled to the top of thecourse, and then guided down the course periodically, such as two ormore times per day. Of course, if the ski course is relatively wide,then. several trips down the course may be necessary to cover the entirewidth, or two or more apparatus may be kepton hand, and moved down thecourse one behind the other, either over the same route to cut downlarge hummocks or pack freshly fallen snow, or over side-by side routesto cover the entire width of a relatively wide course.

Since for packing new snow, the blade B is not necessarily utilized, itmay be desirable to have on hand at a ski course a minimum number ofgraders, also adapted to act as packers, and perhaps one or more snowpackers, utilized for use only when new snow is to be packed. Ingeneral, the number of passes down the slope, in packing new snow, maybe greater than the number of passes necessary to maintain the course,once it has been packed down. Also, with. several graders and/orpackers, the new snow on a course can be packed more quickly; In a snowpacker, the packer or packing wheel P is included, and also sufficientof the framework to provide a pivotal mounting for the packer P. Thefront runner may be utilized or omitted, as desired, while if the frontrunner is omitted, then the handlemay be formed merely as a continuationof the framework, to enable the operator to guide the apparatus down thecourse. Thus, by duplication of the packer P, and the use of a muchsimplified framework, additional snow packing equipmentmay be providedat only a fraction of the cost of the complete Of course, it will beunderstood that for a normal ski course, at least one combined graderand packer will be desirable, since the packerapparatus alone is adaptedprimarily to handle new- Snow.

While a variation in the construction of framework F is illustrated inFig. 3, it will be evident that other variations in the construction ofthe apparatus of this invention may be made. Thus, in the modificationshown in Fig. 8, the framework F may be formed of bars, or may be atruss-type construction of the type shown in Fig. 3, and the packer Pmay be similar to that shown in Fig. 1. However, the blade B may have asmooth lower edge, i. e. Without teeth, and the teeth, such asharrow-type teeth 70, may be disposed forwardly of the blade andadjustable independently thereof. Thus, the teeth 7% may be mounted on asupporting rod 71, through which the teeth may extend or may otherwisebe suitably attached thereto, as for adjustment of the distance to whichthe ends of the teeth extend from the rod 71. Also, the rod 71 may bepivotable to different positions to change the angle at which the teethextend, rod 71 being suitably mounted between the intersections of eachof two pairs of supporting bars 72 and 73, bar 72 being pivotallyattached to the supporting bars 39 for the blade B and the bar 73, ifdesired, being adjustable along the supporting bar 39 for the blade, asthrough a bolt adapted to be placed in different holes therein, oradjustment of the individual teeth on bar 71 may sutfice. As before, theblade B itself is preferably pivotally adjustable, to different angularpositions, by an adjusting bar 44', the position of which may be changedat a bracket 43 mounted on reinforcing rod 42'. Also, side springs 67,each acting between the framework F"and a bar 68', attached at its lowerend to a supporting bar 39 for the blade B, urge both the plate and theteeth downwardly. As will be evident, since the teeth 70 may be disposedcloser to the pivot point or fulcrum for the blade B, any change inelevation of the blade will be reflected in a lesser change in theelevation of the teeth.

For adjusting the vertical position of the blade B, in the apparatus ofFig. 8, a cable 74 may extend rearwardly from a reel mounted on thefront end of the handle (corresponding to handle H of Fig. 1, but notshown in Fig. 8), the cable 74 leading to a horizontal lever 75,

- pivoted at one end on a bracket 76 attached to the framework F, andadapted to produce a mechanical advantage by virtue of the attachment ofa blade cable 77 closer to the pivot point on bracket 76 than the pointof attachment of handle cable 74. Blade cable 77 may run over a pulley78, and may be attached to the blade B at its center, preferably on therear side, while the pulley 78 may be supported by a suitable bracketstructure 79. In addition, each of a pair of springs 17' may be attachedat one end to the framework F, one on each side, and at the opposite endto a bar 18 for urging the guides 14' into the snow at all times. Thesupports 15' for guides 14 may be mounted on a rod 80, in turn mountedfor pivotal movement on the frame, while a bar 81 may be attachedthereto and to which the operator may attach a lead line extendingforwardly to the handle, so that the guides 14 may be lifted, ifdesired, to facilitate turning a sharp corner or for other reasons. Thetruss structure 79 may also be braced to a transverse rod or bar 82, asshown.

In the embodiment of Fig. 8, the different positions of horizontal lever75 produce the corresponding positions of the blade B, and may beachieved by the operator turning the reel at the front end of thehandle. However, the cable 74 may merely be attached to the handle, asin Fig. 9, so that the blade position may be changed merely by movingthe handle upwardly or downwardly. As will be evident, moving the handleupwardly will permit the springs 67 to move the blade downwardly, whilea downward movement of the handle (such as from a position above thehorizontal to a position to or at the horizontal) will pull the lever 75forwardly, thus raising the blade B. In general, if the cable 74 ismerely attached to the handle, the operator probably should be moreexpert as a skier, since involuntary movement of the handle duringskiing may tend to change the blade to a position perhaps not desired atthat time by the operator. Nevertheless, the spring 67 willautomatically cause the blade B to dig into the snow, whenever theoperator releases the handle, so that if the operator gets into trouble,all that is necessary for him to do is to release the handle and theapparatus will automatically be stopped.

From the foregoing, it will be evident that the apparatus of thisinvention fulfills to a marked degree the requirements and objectshereinbefore set forth. Use of a packer comprising a slatted roller, orhaving slots for the passage of snow, permits fresh snow to be packedwith readiness and facility. With the adjustable blade, the apparatus isparticularly useful in maintaining a ski course in condition,particularly a ski course subject to heavy use, and to do soirrespective of whether no snow has fallen for some time, or whetherfresh snow falls continuously or periodically. The apparatus may bemoved down a slope in use at a sufficient speed that a minimum ofinterference with normal skiing is produced, while the apparatus mayalso be utilized in packing a slope of new snow in a considerably lessperiod of time, and with the use of considerably less personnel, thanthe old method of packing by foot, with skis. The apparatus may beaccurately guided down the slope, due to the provisions therein forminimizing side slippage, and the apparatus is also safe to use, since asingle motion of the operator, as by releasing the reel handle of theembodiment of Fig. 1 or releasing the handle of the modified embodimentof Fig. 8, permits the blade springs to cause the blade to beimmediately plunged into the snow, and quickly arrest further progressof the apparatus. The apparatus is readily moved to the top of the skislope, as by mere attachment to a tow or lift, and also, in the case ofa rope or T-bar tow, may be used to grade the upward trail over whichthe skiers pass, as well as the course down which the skiers move. Aswill be evident, the apparatus is comparatively simple in construction,and therefore may be made at a comparatively low cost, yet the speed andthe facility with which a new snow slope may be packed, and also acourse maintained in desirable condition, accompanied by the need forless personnel than perviously necessary, can result in each apparatuspaying for itself many times over, even during a single ski season.

It will be understood that various materials other than those describedmay be utilized, and that the parts may be changed considerably. Forinstance, various types of springs or other resilient means may beutilized, and various types of mechanical parts or connections toproduce a mechanical advantage, where desired. Thus, although differentembodiments of this invention have been illustrated and describedspecifically, and variations therein also shown and described, it willbe understood that other embodiments of this invention may exist andthat various changes may be made therein, all without departing from thespirit and scope of this invention.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for grading and packing snow comprising a framework; aforwardly extending operator actuated handle pivotally attached to thefront end of said framework; a front runner connected with said handlefor turning movement thereof through said handle; a packer mounted forrotation about a horizontal axis and adjacent the rear of saidframework, said packer being a generally hollow cylinder in form buthaving spaces in its periphery so that snow may pass into and throughsaid spaces and also may fall out through said spaces; a blade extendingsubstantially transversely and mounted on said framework forwardly ofsaid packer, said blade being movable to different vertical positions;resilient means urging said blade downwardly; and operator-actuatedcontrol means associated with said handle for raising and lowering saidblade, said resilient means normally tending to cause said blade to dropinto snow when said control means is released by said operator.

2. Apparatus for grading and packing snow as defined 9 in claim. 1,whereinsaid control means. includesia, cable and a reel-mounted, inaforward position on saidv handle.

3. Apparatus for grading and packing snow as, defined in claim 1,wherein, said control means is responsive to the. elevation of saidhandle.

4. Apparatusfor gradingrandpacking, snow as defined in claim 1, whereinsaid. packer comprises a wheel. provided with .circumferentially. spacedand transversely. extending slats.

5. Apparatus for grading and packing snow as defined in claim 1, whereinsaid packer comprises a wheel provided with a plurality ofcircumferentially spaced and transversely extending slats, and outwardlyextending cleats on said slats.

6. Apparatus for packing snow comprising a hollow, generally cylindricalwheel having a series of spaces disposed about its periphery so thatsnow may pass into and through said spaces and also may fall out throughsaid spaces; frame means on which said wheel is mounted for rotationabout its axis; means associated with said frame means for guiding saidwheel; and a longitudinally extending guide at least at one side of saidwheel, said guide being disposed generally vertically and being mountedon said framework for upward and downward movement so as normally toextend into the snow.

7. Apparatus for packing snow as defined in claim 6, including a guideat each side of said wheel and resilient means urging said guidesdownwardly.

8. Apparatus for grading and packing snow comprising a framework havingparallel side members and a transverse rear member disposedhorizontally, said side members converging toward each other at thefront, a vertical housing to which said converging side members areattached, and at least one intermediate cross member extending betweensaid side members; oppositely disposed shafts extending horizontallyfrom said side members adjacent the rear thereof; a packer mounted forrotation about said horizontal shafts and generally cylindrical in form,said packer including a wheel at each end journaled on one of saidshafts, a series of slats disposed in spaced circumferential relationand attached to the periphery of each said wheel, and a series of cleatsattached to said slats and extending outwardly therefrom; a verticalshaft journaled in said vertical housing; a front handle pivotallyattached to the upper end of said vertical shaft; a front runnerpivotally attached to the lower end of said vertical shaft, both saidhandle and said runner being pivoted about horizontal axes so thatturning movement of said handle will be transmitted through saidvertical shaft to said runner; a pair of arms pivotally attached to saidside members at opposite points forwardly of said intermediate crossmember; a blade extending substantially transversely and mounted forpivotal movement on the rear ends of said arms, said blade being movableto difierent vertical positions; a blade cross member extending betweensaid arms; and adjusting bar pivotally attached at its rear end to saidblade and extending forwardly past said blade cross member; means forattaching said adjusting bar to said blade cross member at differentpositions; an upwardly extending bracket mounted on each said blade arm;a spring extending between each said bracket and said framework forurging said blade downwardly; at least one pulley and a mounting brackettherefor on one of said framework cross members; cable means over saidpulley and leading to said blade; 21 cable reel on said handle adjacentthe forward end thereof, said cable extending rearwardly along saidhandle to said framework; and force multiplying means mounted on saidframework and connected respectively to said cable from said reel and tosaid cable means from said blade.

9. Apparatus for grading and packing snow, 'as defined in claim 8,wherein said force multiplying means comprises a pair of connected drumsof different diameter mounted on said framework adjacent the forward endthereof for rotation about a transverse, horizontal axis,

10 said reelycablebeing-(Quad on the larger'drum; and wherein said cablemeans includes a single cable wound on the smaller drum and extendsrearwardly to a point of connection with a pair ofcableseach having aturnbuckle therein-and terminating in a chain passing over a pulley andto said blade, said chains-being spaced apart laterally.

10. Apparatusfer grading and-packing snow, as defined in claim 8,wherein saidbladeisprovided with a series of teeth extending below thelower edge thereof.

11. Apparatus for grading and packing snow, as defined in claim 8,wherein said force multiplying means includes a lever pivotally attachedat one end to said framework and to which said reel cable is attached ata greater distance from said pivot point than said blade cable means.

12. Apparatus for grading and packing snow, as defined in claim 8,including two pair of arms, each pair connected together at their lowerends and connected in spaced relation at their upper ends to a bladesupporting arm; a rod extending between said pairs of arms; and a seriesof teeth adjustably mounted on said rod.

13. Apparatus for grading and packing snow, as defined in claim 8,wherein said handle comprises a truss-like structure having atransversely extending U-shaped opening at the forward end thereof, saidreel being mounted on the closed side of said U.

14. Apparatus for grading and packing snow comprising a framework havingparallel side members and a transverse rear member disposedhorizontally, said side members converging toward each other at thefront; a vertical housing to which said side members are attached, andat least one intermediate cross member extending between said sidemembers; oppositely disposed shafts extending horizontally from saidside members adjacent the rear thereof; a packer mounted for rotationabout said horizontal shafts and generally cylindrical in form, saidpacker including a wheel at each end journaled on one of said shafts, aseries of slats disposed in spaced circumferential relation and attachedto the periphery of each said Wheel, and a series of cleats attached tosaid slats and extending outwardly therefrom; a front runner mounted forpivotal movement at the forward end of said framework; a handleconnected with said runner so that turning movement of said handle willbe transmitted to said runner; a pair of blade arms pivotally attachedto said side members at opposite points forwardly of said intermediatecross member; a blade extending substantially transversely and mountedfor pivotal movement on the rear ends of said blade arms, said bladebeing movable to different vertical positions; a blade cross memberextending between said arms; an adjusting bar pivotally attached at itsrear end to said blade and extending forwardly past said blade crossmember; means for attaching said adjusting bar to said blade crossmember at different positions; an upwardly extending bracket mounted oneach said blade arm; a spring extending between each said bracket andsaid framework for urging said blade downwardly; at least one pulley anda mounting bracket therefor on one of said framework cross members;cable means over said pulley and leading to said blade; an operatorcontrolled cable extending rearwardly from said handle; a forcemultiplying lever mounted on said framework and connected respectivelyto said handle cable and to said blade cable, said blade cable beingattached to said lever at a point closer to its fulcrum than said handlecable; a transverse rod mounted on said blade arms forwardly of saidblade and adjustable to different radial positions; a series ofharrow-like teeth mounted on said rod for adjustment forwardly andrearwardly with respect to said rod; a pair of longitudinally extendingguides disposed at each side of said packer and mounted for pivotalmovement on said framework; and resilient means urging said guidesdownwardly.

(References on following page) References Cited in the file of thispatent UNITED STATES PATENTS Mundy Feb. 21, 1888 Dernell Dec. 13, 1892McCusker Mar. 28, 1899 Aucoin Sept. 26, 1899 Bandle May 26, 1908 12Warcup Mar. 2, 1909 Brown Dec. 20, 1910 Younger Apr. 9, 1912 AndersonApr. 13, 1915 Ghent Apr. 20, 1920 Cox Oct. 27, 1925 Petersen June 30,1931 Clark Mar. 6, 1945

